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Dane in distress

Firefighters rescue dog from fall through ice

Photo by Evan Magierski in a comment on a Forestville-Fire Dept-Inc. Facebook post. Ruger, a Great Dane, is safe after falling through ice on Saturday.

FORESTVILLE — Saturday’s weather wasn’t quite ideal for a dog to go swimming, a local Great Dane accidentally discovered.

At about 1 p.m., the Forestville Fire Department was dispatched to an animal rescue call on Prospect Street. They arrived to find that a Great Dane named Ruger had fallen through the ice in a pond in the woods approximately a quarter of a mile from the road.

“I believe the dog was outside, and the owner’s father heard the dog yelping and he ran toward it because he thought maybe it was going to be attacked by something, and he found it in the ice,” said Forestville Fire Chief Kyle Barthel.

Once the fire department got to the scene, Barthel and Cpt. Andrew Montague threw on their wetsuits and personal flotation devices. Firefighter Justin Hycner operated the all-terrain vehicle and transported the crew to the pond, at which time Barthel was tied to a 100-foot rope, anchored to Montague.

Twenty-five feet out from the land, Barthel dove in, and minutes later, Ruger was reunited with his owners, who were waiting with open arms and towels to dry him off.

Barthel said that the dog was in the water for roughly 20 minutes before units arrived, but is not suffering any negative impact from the polar plunge.

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